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November 2, 2022 - March 17, 2023
You may know, for example, that you should eat more vegetables. You might choose to spend fifteen seconds each day simply imagining that you are eating—and enjoying!—some broccoli. When this is habitual and even pleasurable, you can increase the amount to thirty seconds—or whatever amount of time appeals to you. (You can then work up to another kaizen strategy, the action of actually eating a floret or two; the kaizen technique of small actions is discussed in the next chapter.)
Small questions are a powerful way to generate ideas for mind sculpture. Just ask yourself: What is a tiny step I could make to achieve my goal? Let the question stew for a few days or weeks. When you have an answer, you can use mind sculpture to imagine yourself taking that step.
Small actions are at the heart of kaizen. By taking steps so tiny that they seem trivial or even laughable, you’ll sail calmly past obstacles that have defeated you before. Slowly—but painlessly!—you’ll cultivate an appetite for continued success and lay down a permanent new route to change.
Remember, big, bold efforts to make a change can be counterproductive. Many of these efforts don’t take into account the weighty obstacles that may lie in the path: a lack of time, tight budgets, or a deeply ingrained resistance to change.
Small actions trick the brain into thinking: Hey, this change is so tiny that it’s no big deal. No need to get worked up. No risk of failure or unhappiness here.
By outfoxing the fear response, small actions allow the brain to build up new, permanent habits—at a pace that may be surprisingly brisk.
Taking small steps, knowing that you are calming fear and building a new habit, requires trust and optimism. People who struggle with kaizen do so not because the steps are hard but because they are easy.
How can I get to my goal in one minute a day? At this rate, it’ll take years! But kaizen asks us to be patient. It asks us to have faith that with small steps, we can better overcome the mind’s initial resistance to change.
If you find yourself growing frustrated with the pace of change, ask yourself: Isn’t slow change better than what I’ve experienced before . . . which is no change at all?
Then apply the kaizen technique of asking small questions to determine your best first step. Suppose you choose health. Have your partner ask you the following: What small, trivial step could you take that might improve the quality of your health?
You’ll know that the step is small enough if you are as certain you can do it as you are that the sun will come up tomorrow.
For many people, that first step may be to devote one minute a day to thinking about the parent’s positive qualities.
If you ever feel yourself dreading the activity or making excuses for not performing it, it’s time to cut back on the size of the step.
We are so accustomed to living with minor annoyances that it’s not always easy to identify them, let alone make corrections. But these annoyances have a way of acquiring mass and eventually blocking your path to change. By training yourself to spot and solve small problems, you can avoid undergoing much more painful remedies later.
When we are trying to make a change, it can be tempting to ignore the subtle warning signs, ones that say: Something’s wrong here. You need to slow down, retrace your steps, and investigate.
Focusing on the small mistakes now can save us years of costly corrections.
One common characteristic of these well-functioning teams, said Dr. Weick, is that they “distinguish themselves by being able to detect incredibly weak warning signs and taking strong, decisive action.”
Whether you wish to train yourself or others to instill better habits, small rewards are the perfect encouragement.
Small rewards are not only sufficient as an incentive to get a job—especially a dreaded task—done, but they are optimal.
in Japan, the value of the average reward is $3.88 (as opposed to the American average of $458.00).
Japanese executives love small rewards not because they’re stingy (although kaizen does encourage us to value cost savings), but because they utilize a basic tenet of human nature: The larger the external rewards, the greater the risk of inhibiting or stunting the native drive for excellence.
Since many of us suffer from jammed schedules and financial strain, it’s a kind of reward itself to know that someone took the time to say thanks.
“Most of us miss out on life’s big prizes. The Pulitzer. The Nobel. Oscars. Tonys. Emmys. But we’re all eligible for life’s small pleasures. A pat on the back. A kiss behind the ear. A four-pound bass. A full moon. An empty parking space. A crackling fire. A great meal. A glorious sunset. Hot soup. Cold beer. Don’t fret about copping life’s grand rewards. Enjoy its tiny delights. There are plenty for all of us.” —from an advertisement for United Technologies Corporation
The kaizen approach to life requires a slower pace and an appreciation of small moments. This pleasant technique can lead to creative breakthroughs and strengthened relationships, and give you a daily boost toward excellence.
Other diseases, including cholera and malaria, were cured the same way—that is, by looking at who didn’t get the disease and trying to figure out why.
Jenner’s story challenges the popular belief that change and progress spring from instantaneous flashes of insight. A philosopher, scientist, or artist sits alone in his garret, agonizing, until—Eureka!—divine inspiration strikes. But many great moments of progress come out of a workaday attention to the little things.
When you’re implementing a plan for change but find yourself bored, restless, and stuck, look around for hidden moments of delight.
“The true creator may be recognized by his ability to always find about him, in the commonest and humblest thing, items worthy of note.” —Igor Stravinsky
“To be really great in little things, to be truly noble and heroic in the insipid details of everyday life, is a virtue so rare as to be worthy of canonization.” —Harriet Beecher Stowe
“Do your little bit of good where you are; it’s those little bits of good put together that overwhelm the world.” —Desmond Tutu
“Turning toward your spouse in the little ways is also the key to long-lasting romance. Many people think that the secret to reconnecting with their partner is a candlelight dinner or a by-the-sea vacation. But the real secret is to turn toward each other in little ways every day.” —John Gottman
Most of us spend so much time dwelling on the past or anticipating the future that we miss small moments.
